This invention relates in general to a random selection device and, in particular, to the use of such a device in certain games.
Various mechanisms and machines are presently in use for executing a random selection of numbers but they are not deemed to be satisfactory from an operational point of view.
As an example, in the present day selection mechanism used by different state gaming commissions in lotto number selections an elaborate pneumatic machine is utilized for randomizing the numbers being selected. The machine comprises an enclosure in which the numbers to be selected are obtained from ping-pong type balls which have numbers positioned thereon. The balls are mixed by use of jets of air which cause the balls to rise and fall randomly. A number of tubes as determined by the number of selections to be made are located above the balls that have been elevated by the air jets. Upon the activation of a switch associated with each tube, one of the elevated balls is pulled into one of the tubes.
The immediate shortcoming of the above discussed prior art selection machine is that each number must be selected in a serial manner which is time consuming. In the present day environment, the number of indicia selected for various games can range from three to eleven and, hence, it is obvious that the time utilization to determine the winning number combination can be considerable.
Another easily recognized insufficiency of the above discussed random selection systems results from the human intervention that is required to determine the random number selection. This is a result of a need to orient the numbered ball to a position where the indicia is clearly visible to an observer after being drawn into the tube.
It is also recognized that the selection machines of the prior art are somewhat complicated in view of the mechanical structures required for operation. This results from a need for not only an air supply for causing the light weight balls to become activated by jumping upwardly, but in addition, the system must be activated to select one of the many balls through a tube catching mechanism. Hence, the prior art mechanical system is deemed too complicated and expensive to serve as a random selection machine for a simple state sponsored lotto contest.